Tag Archives: LCRA

Devil’s Hollow snares Benson

Posted on May 5, 2008 | Comments Off on Devil’s Hollow snares Benson

The Chicago Bears already were down on RB Cedric Benson for a pitiful average of 3.4 yards per carry–a product of chronic injuries since leaving Texas in 2005 as its only running back to gain a thousand yards in four consecutive seasons. Now his pro career is in doubt after his third arrest (but first pepper-spraying) since 2002. This time it was at Lake Travis’ hard-partyin’, drunk-on-the-water Devil’s Hollow (Cove)–charged with boating while intoxicated and resisting arrest.

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Posted in Sailing, Texas Football

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Has the drought returned?

Posted on October 5, 2007 | Comments Off on Has the drought returned?

Daytime highs are running 3.2 to 9.2 degrees above normal, the summer’s unusual rain has stopped, and it all looks to continue hot and dry for at least another week. So says LCRA meteorologist Bob Rose who blames a persistent area of high pressure, which would have been more appropriate in the summer but never materialized for long back then. He also blames a strengthening La Nina, which usually means a dry fall and winter for us. More here. It’s not a permalink. LCRA doesn’t seem to believe in them. But it should stay good through the weekend.

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Posted in Weather/Climate

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Draining Lake Travis

Posted on September 25, 2007 | Comments Off on Draining Lake Travis

Some people worry a lot about Lake Travis, especially when new municipalities start negotiating with the Lower Colorado River Authority for access. The lake is a reservoir, with customers downstream, and a certain vulnerability to the weather. So it goes up and down, and up and down. Last year it was waaaayyy down. Which is when this outfit got started and used one of my photos, which they have finally attributed, for which I am grateful. Cute cartoon, too. Check it out.

UPDATE:  And, then, I don’t when, they went toes up and the photo also disappeared.

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Posted in Sailing, Texana, Weather/Climate

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Oops

Posted on September 5, 2007 | Comments Off on Oops

All that Hill Country rain yesterday has the Llano and Pedernales rivers running almost 4,000 cubic feet per second. Since both feed into the Highland Lakes, it’s just a matter of time before Lake Travis starts climbing again. In fact, the LCRA is predicting a rise of about half a foot by this evening. Fortunately that would be only about 683 feet msl, and the rain is expected to be over by tonight.

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Posted in Sailing, Weather/Climate

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Rain ahead

Posted on August 29, 2007 | Comments Off on Rain ahead

But the LCRA’s Bob Rose says not to worry about the tropical wave crossing the Yucatan:

"This system could experience some limited tropical development as it moves over the Bay of Campeche on Thursday.The system will have little effect on our region as it moves inland over Mexico on Friday. An area of clouds and showers is located about 900 miles east of the Windward Islands in the central Atlantic. This system has some potential to develop into a tropical depression over the next couple of days. Another area of clouds and showers is flaring up off the coast of the southeastern US. [It] is drifting south and also shows some potential for development over the next couple of days."

Meanwhile, he does expect a weak cold front sagging into Centex to stall and increase our rain chances tomorrow through the weekend. I’m still hoping to get in a sail on Friday morning, but not at the risk of covering the sails wet.

UPDATE:  It came a little early, the rain. Storms all around us, with lightning and thunder. Gotta go.

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Posted in South of the Border, Weather/Climate

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Another flood gate closed

Posted on July 18, 2007 | Comments Off on Another flood gate closed

Just one flood gate remains open on Mansfield Dam at Lake Travis and the sloop is accessible again:

"Late this afternoon, the elevation of Lake Travis was at 683.6 feet above mean sea level (msl) — nearly 18 feet lower than its recent peak elevation July 6. However, the lake — created to hold floodwaters — still remains in its flood pool; Lake Travis is at full elevation at 681 feet msl."

Went out to check the boat this morning, after finishing mowing the lawn. Cabin has no mildew and the outboard started on the first pull. Then, coming home, another thunderstorm passed over with blinding rain. Traffic slowed, fortunately, because the car ahead braked suddenly and I ran into it. My fault, of course, as it always is when you rearend someone. Fortunately no one was hurt, but I’m now looking at expensive bodywork. I do wish all this rain would go the hell away. The aquifers are full, the ground is saturated. We don’t need any more.

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Posted in Sailing, Texana, Weather/Climate

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Lake Travis reopens

Posted on July 16, 2007 | Comments Off on Lake Travis reopens

At 1 p.m. today, the lake is to reopen to recreational boating, although given the warnings, one has to wonder why:

“’It’s not quite the same lake that it was before the flood,’ [LCRA’s Tim] Bradle said. ‘While much of the debris is gone, some still remains, especially just below the lake’s surface, and it could be hazardous to watercraft and people.’”

One of the aerial shots I saw showed a dead cow floating along. I suppose it’s been taken care of. But there’s also three floodgates open on Mansfield Dam, though one is supposed to close today. Well, now I can go ahead and reschedule the sloop’s rerigging, possibly as soon as next week. And start dreading the refurbishing of the teak.

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Posted in Sailing, Texana, Weather/Climate

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